Arthur Phillip honoured with plaque at Westminster Abbey

Julie Power

Arthur Phillip, the "modest" seaman who commanded the first fleet and became the first governor of NSW, was recognised on Wednesday as the "founder of modern Australia" by a plaque unveiled in Westminster Abbey.

To mark the bicentenary of Phillip's death, the Duke of Edinburgh laid a wreath at the stone during an hour-long dedication service that was also attended by the NSW Governor, Dame Marie Bashir.

Phillip had been a "modest, yet world-class seaman, linguist and patriot, whose selfless service laid the secure foundations on which was developed the Commonwealth of Australia," said the Dean of Westminster, the Very Reverend Dr John Hall.

His plaque, carved from Sydney sandstone, joins those for David Livingstone, Thomas Cochrane and Isaac Newton in the Abbey's nave.

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The commemoration marks the beginning of two months of events in Australia leading up to the bicentenary of Phillip's death on August 31.

He was meant to establish a penal colony at Botany Bay but because of his rural background realised the soils and adjacent rivers were not suitable to sustaining agriculture.

His achievements will be also commemorated with the installation of a memorial bust in the forecourt of the Museum of Sydney.

Many feel that the recognition is long overdue. Phillip's contribution was "buried by the prejudices" of those who saw nothing good in Great Britain's founding of the colony, said Michael Pembroke, a NSW Supreme Court judge and author of a new book about the pioneer, titled Arthur Phillip.

"For many people, for many years, the origins of modern Australia were very much covered up," he said.

Justice Pembroke told 2GB there was no doubt the Aboriginal people were treated badly, but the British politicians had noble intentions for the colony.

"They wanted to improve convicts, wanted to improve land and grow crops and build a brand new society."

Former Liberal staffer Justin Owen, when reviewing Justice Pembroke's book, said the contribution of NSW's first governor should be marked with a "huge bronze statue of Phillip on the lawn" which should be "unashamedly patriotic and King Kong-sized".

The Britain Australian Society said Phillip was an "under-sung British hero". To mark his contribution, it announced new Admiral Arthur Phillip Scholarships open to Australian and British students to study law, humanity, scientific inquiry, maritime studies, languages and foreign relations.

Over the next two months, Phillip's contribution will be recognised in Australia with talks, walks and television shows.

His story will be portayed on TV in Banished, a drama inspired by the events following the arrival of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove.

Bicentenary events include an academic symposium at Government House, talks at the State Library of NSW and the Botanic Gardens, guided tours every day at the Museum of Sydney, and walking tours in the Rocks and western Sydney.